News of Note

UW fined for monkey deaths in primate research lab
Every year, tens of thousands of monkeys are used as test subjects in labs around the country. Schools defend such experiments as essential to the advancement of medicine. The Department of Agriculture conducts annual spot inspections of these facilities and can step in when problems are identified. In the past five years at the University of Washington’s Primate Research Center one monkey died of malnutrition, two more were found to be kept in cages that were too small and one scientist was fined for performing an excessive number of surgeries on the same animals.

Carriage Horse Dies on 54th Street, Sparking Animal Rights Debate
A carriage horse collapsed on 54th St. in Manhattan Sunday morning, and died soon after that. The horse was walking between 8th and 9th Aves. on its way to Central Park. Animal rights groups have quickly commented on the event and the so-called “abuse” of these animals. Elizabeth Forel, of the Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages, has become one of the most outspoken people on the horse’s sudden death. “A healthy horse doesn’t just die on the street,” Forel said. “We are asking for an investigation.”

Farm, animal rights groups align, to ire of other ag organizations
One farm group’s attempt to find common ground with an animal rights group is not winning it friends among others in agriculture. The Nebraska Farmers Union said Tuesday it has reached an agreement with the Humane Society of the United States to develop standards and joint marketing efforts for humanely raised meat and other animal products.

Salmon-Killing Virus Seen for First Time in the Wild on the Pacific Coast
A lethal and highly contagious marine virus has been detected for the first time in wild salmon in the Pacific Northwest, researchers in British Columbia said on Monday, stirring concern that it could spread there, as it has in Chile, Scotland and elsewhere…an environmental scientist at the university who leads the sockeye study, suggested that the virus had spread from the province’s aquaculture industry, which has imported millions of Atlantic salmon eggs over the last 25 years, primarily from Iceland and Scandinavia. The virus could have “a devastating impact” not just on the region’s farmed and wild salmon but on the many species that depend on them in the food web, like grizzly bears, killer whales and wolves.

Zoo director fights for strict rules on keeping wild animals in Michigan
As authorities hunted down exotic animals Wednesday in Ohio, Detroit Zoo Director Ron Kagan headed to Lansing to argue against a proposed change in Michigan law that he believes would relax regulations on keeping wild animals in the state. “This is an unfortunate coincidence,” he said. “But I obviously feel (that) since we’ve rescued so many of these (types of) animals from terrible situations, we need to protect the public, and we need to protect the welfare of individual animals.”

State Senator to Introduce Exotic Animal Law
After the release of many exotic animals in Ohio, we learned the state has some of the nation’s weakest restrictions on exotic pets. State Senator David Thomas said Thursday he would reintroduce an exotic animal bill he has sponsored in previous sessions. Thomas says his measure would limit the importation and sale of non-indigenous animals.

Vegan: no longer an experiment
Three months of eating vegan has given me more energy, I sleep better and I believe I can focus better on work. That alone makes it feel like veganism is this little secret I stumbled across, making me wonder why it seems no one is really talking much about the benefits of the lifestyle. On Oct. 2, my husband, Colin, and I went out to breakfast. It was there, over non-vegan pancakes and eggs, that we both said, “I can’t do this.”

Loving the Chambered Nautilus to Death
Scientists say, humans are loving the chambered nautilus to death, throwing its very existence into danger.
“A horrendous slaughter is going on out here,” said Peter D. Ward, a biologist from the University of Washington, during a recent census of the marine creature in the Philippines. “They’re nearly wiped out.”
The culprit? Growing sales of jewelry and ornaments derived from the lustrous shell. To satisfy the worldwide demand, fishermen have been killing the nautilus by the millions, scientists fear.

Should you get rid of your cat if you’re pregnant?
Actors Chris Pratt and Anna Faris gave away their 19-year-old incontinent cat Bella because they were worried it would affect a future pregnancy. Pratt and Faris are far from the only couple to ditch a cat or dog because of concerns over how it would fit in with pregnancy and a baby.